London mayor Sadiq Khan’s approval rating goes negative for first time since election May 2, 2019 London mayor Sadiq Khan’s popularity has dropped into negative figures for the first time. Data from a You Gov poll for December showed Khan had a net approval rating of minus one. The poll of 1,000 people, commissioned by City Hall, showed 32 per cent said they were satisfied and 33 per cent dissatisfied. Read [...]
Former Hbos chief executive set to take top job at The Restaurant Group May 1, 2019 The former chief executive of Hbos is set to be appointed chief executive at Wagamama-owner The Restaurant Group. Sky News reported that Andy Hornby had been given the job with his role expected to be announced as soon as tomorrow. Read more: The Restaurant Group profits fall as like-for-like sales slip Hornby has reportedly resigned [...]
US Federal Reserve opts to hold interest rates in strong labour market May 1, 2019 The US Federal Reserve said today it was not raising interest rates, citing a strong labour market with solid economic activity. The Fed said it would maintain its target rate at 2.25 to 2.5 per cent. It said the labour market remains strong and economic activity rose at a “solid rate”. It said job gains have [...]
Defence secretary Gavin Williamson ousted from cabinet over Huawei security leak May 1, 2019 Defence secretary Gavin Williamson has been fired from the cabinet after an investigation into the leak of details of a National Security Council (NSC) meeting discussing Chinese tech firm Huawei. Prime Minister Theresa May wrote in a letter released today that "no other credible version of events to explain this leak has been identified". Read more: [...]
City watchdog launches review of the financial advice market May 1, 2019 The City watchdog today launched a review of the financial advice market amid concerns investors are paying too much. The Financial Conduct Authority’s review will look at what consumers want from the market and how the market works to deliver this. The FCA will review how changes made since 2012, including the retail distribution review [...]
Business secretary Greg Clark set to announce £100m funding for British Steel April 30, 2019 Business secretary Greg Clark is set to announce a £100m funding package for British Steel. Sky News reported that Clark will announce the pledge in the House of Commons tomorrow after the UK’s second-biggest steelmaker made the request for emergency funding to pay an EU climate levy. According to the report, government funding has been [...]
Pfizer shares rise as it beats Wall Street profit estimates for first quarter April 30, 2019 Pharma company Pfizer beat Wall Street estimates for first quarter profit today and raised its earnings forecast for the year. Revenue rose 1.6 per cent to $13.12bn, ahead of estimates of $12.99bn. Net profit rose nine per cent to $3.88bn, or 68 cents per share. Read more: GSK to split as it forms £9.8bn consumer [...]
Catlin founder launches new insurer Convex with $1.8bn capital April 30, 2019 The founder of Catlin has launched a new insurer today, four years after the $4.1bn (£3.14bn) sale of his eponymous company. Stephen Catlin will be chair and chief executive of the new insurer, called Convex, with former Catlin chief underwriting officer Paul Brand as deputy chief executive. Read more: XL Group profits jump following Catlin [...]
Labour opts for status quo on second Brexit referendum after five-hour meeting April 30, 2019 Labour’s top decision making body today stopped short of committing the party to support for a second Brexit referendum in the upcoming European election campaign. After a five hour meeting, Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC) decided not to back a second referendum in its European election manifesto. Read more: Tories trail Brexit party, Labour and [...]
Not so lucky: Google’s share price falls eight per cent after disappointing results April 30, 2019 Shares in Google’s parent company Alphabet fell more than eight per cent in early trading in the US today after its results for the first quarter disappointed last night. Revenue rose 16.7 per cent to $36.3bn (£27.8bn) for the three ended 31 March, its slowest pace in three years, missing analyst estimates of $37.3bn according [...]
